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April 28, 2023
Are you not a fan of gin yet? Or have you recently developed a love for gin and are looking for more refreshing recipes to add to your collection? Look no further, we have compiled a shopping list for you to create 11 classic gin recipes at home. By putting a spin on some of these classics, this shopping list will yield over 20 unique drink creations for you to enjoy with friends or add to your happy hour rotation.
To ensure quality and have a bit of fun, we tried and tested all of these recipes ourselves. For most of the recipes, we provide a range of proportions instead of strict rules. We recommend starting with the lower end of the range and adjusting to your liking by adding more of individual ingredients. One of the best things about gin is its versatility and interchangeability. You can substitute other liquors for gin or even experiment with different base spirits and supporting ingredients after finding your preferred balance with gin.
Before you get started, nobody wants to buy a bottle of liqueur that can only be used for one recipe. We have simplified this shopping list to indicate how many recipes call for each ingredient. Only two out of the eleven recipes (*) require a specialty liqueur denoted by an asterisk. We have also suggested variations on classics like the French 75 and Gin & Tonic, which only require adding ¼ oz to ½ oz of liqueur to the core formula. Get ready to shake things up with these gin recipes!
These 3 recipes require the most essential ingredients for starting your bar and in most cases you can walk into any bar and order one, and the bartender will know what you are talking about.
1. The Negroni - This is both our numerical #1 and our personally ranked #1 - our campfire cocktail hour MVP. It's refreshing enough for hot summer evenings, and complex enough for a cold winter’s night. It's strong, bitter, fragrant and sweet. Pack out a Firelight 750 of Negronis on your next backpacking adventure and it’ll inevitably become your new favorite backcountry tradition.
Instructions: Traditionally this is shaken with ice and strained over a coup glass, we prefer it right on top of a large ice cube in a 6-shooter tumbler.
Variations: Add 4 oz of Rose to turn this into a refreshing highball, or 4oz of Champagne to turn it into a Negroni 75
Substitutions: Tequila or Mezcal instead of Gin, when using whiskey its called a “boulevardier”. Try using a different orange-bitter liqueur in place of Aperol or Campari. There are lots of craft distillers making aperitifs these days.
2. Gin Fizz - This is a great base recipe for variations and substitutions. It's core recipe is a holiday brunch tradition in my family. These go down easy and would famously lead to my Nono singing in the family room.
Instructions: Fill your highball with soda water and set it aside. Add your remaining ingredients to your cocktail shaker (if you have a wire blender ball, toss that in there to turn your froth up to 11). Shake vigorously without ice and strain onto the club soda in your highball. Add ice until your tumbler is full and gently stir until your drink is chilled. This order of operations will ensure your drink remains fizzy and doesn’t make a huge foamy mess on your countertop.
Variations: Try adding ¼ - ½ oz of either Elderflower (honeysuckle/ floral), Green Chartreuse (herbal), Maraschino (sweet/ tart), or Aperol (bitter/ orange). Go easy on the simple syrup if adding liqueurs to the mix.
Substitutions: Try it with Mezcal, tequila or your favorite flavored craft vodka in place of gin.
3. Last Word - A new favorite of ours at High Camp HQ. It functions equally as a stiff, after-dinner drink or as a refreshing happy hour concoction. It's got citrus, herbaceousness and maraschino yet somehow still highlights the gin element. It's another great core for experimenting with because each component can be substituted with say another form of citrus juice or an alternative liqueur.
Instructions: Add all ingredients to your shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a lowball tumbler.
Variations: Add egg white and make it a “sour”. Try using lemon or grapefruit juice instead of Lime juice.
Substitutions: Try it with Mezcal or tequila instead of gin.,Add a dash of pineapple juice (a little goes a long way). Add a chopped jalapeño to your cocktail shaker to make it spicy.
This 2nd section, I’m calling “Easy Street”. These cocktails are all slight variations of a Gimlet and can be augmented with the liqueurs used in the craft cocktail collection above. All of these drinks require citrus juice and simple syrup. We highly recommend squeezing your own lemons and limes and not using any citrus juice from concentrate. Some natural grocery stores do carry unsweetened lemon and lime juices and these in fact work great (found in the juice section).
4. Gin Gimlet
Instructions: Add all ingredients to your shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a lowball tumbler. Garnish with a lime peel
Variations: Add egg white and make it a “sour”. Add ¼ - ½ oz of elderflower liqueur or Green Chartreuse. Add a muddled Jalapeño to make it spicy.
Substitutions: Try it with Mezcal or tequila instead of gin (if you add triple sec it's called a margarita) When you use rum, it's called a Daiquiri. Mix up the citrus juice: Grapefruit, lemon, or pineapple juice.
5. French 75 - Take the gimlet, substitute lemon juice and add sparkling wine… Boom, you got a French 75. Great for a boozy brunch or poolside afternoons, this proportion of sparkling wine to an already complete cocktail translates to a great playground for experimenting with new combinations.
Instructions: Fill your highball with Sparkling wine and set it aside. Add your remaining ingredients to your cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously with ice and strain onto the sparkling wine in your highball. Add ice until your highball is full and gently stir until your drink is chilled. This order of operations will ensure your drink remains fizzy and doesn’t make a mess on your countertop.
Variations: Add egg white and make it a “Fizz Royale”. Add ¼ - ½ oz of elderflower liqueur or Maraschino liqueur.
Substitutions: Try using tequila, Mezcal or Pisco as a base spirit instead of gin.
6. Tom Collins - Another riff on the Gimlet/ French 75, with club soda this time.
Instructions: Fill your highball with club soda and set it aside. Add your remaining ingredients to your cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously with ice and strain onto the club soda in your highball. Add ice until your highball is full and gently stir until your drink is chilled. This order of operations will ensure your drink remains fizzy and doesn’t make a mess on your countertop.
Variations: Add egg white and make it a “Fizz Royale”. Add ¼ - ½ oz of elderflower liqueur or Maraschino liqueur.
Substitutions: Try using tequila, Mezcal or Pisco as a base spirit instead of gin.
7. Gin & Tonic - It's really hard to beat a classic gin and tonic. It's not frequently listed on the featured section of a cocktail list, but there are definitely some tricks to add another layer of sophistication to this staple (see variations).
Instructions: Add gin to your highball glass with a couple of ice cubes and stir until gin is chilled. Add chilled tonic water and add additional ice until your highball is full. Top with a lime wedge.
Variations: Add ¼ - ½ oz of elderflower liqueur or green chartreuse
The recipes in the elevated collection might not be ones that you’ve heard of before, but they're sure to impress even the most advance gin connoisseur.
8. Aviation - You’ve probably seen photos of this beautifully violet cocktail, served “up” in a martini glass, although we have not been able to replicate the bright colors represented on a google image search, it does taste deliciously floral and refreshing. This cocktail was one of our inspirations to start this list in the first place, it requires Maraschino liqueur, which appears in other recipes on this list, but I haven’t really loved another Gin cocktail which uses Creme Yvette (we have successfully swapped Creme Yvette for Elderflower Liqueur in some tequila recipes though).
Instructions: Traditionally this is shaken with ice and strained over a martini glass, we prefer it right on top of a large ice cube in a 6-shooter tumbler. There are some home-bartenders out there who could try their hand at clarifying their lemon juice to make the color pop a bit more, but it does sound like a cumbersome process for the uninitiated.
9. Gypsy Eyes - This cocktail caught my eye in the holy grail of cocktail books, Death & Co. It's quite numerous in ingredients, but if you are making a couple for friends it's worth the effort. It's citrus heavy and as always, refreshing.
Instructions: Traditionally this is shaken with ice and strained over a coup, as always we prefer it right on top of a large ice cube in a 6-shooter tumbler.
Variations: Sub tequila for gin or add soda water to make it a day-drinking highball.
9. Martinez - The next time you can’t decide whether to make a manhattan or martini, try a martinez. It's got the same DNA as both of these classics, but it's a Gin with Sweet Vermouth combination - the maraschino liqueur provides an x-factor that allows this cocktail to stand alone as its own creation.
Instructions: Shake all ingredients and strain it right on top of a large ice cube in a 6-shooter tumbler. Add a brandied cherry for a garnish.
Liquor/Spirit |
# of Recipes Using Ingredients |
Cost |
Gin (Pick 1 or all 3) | ||
Gray Whale (750ml) | - | $35 |
St. George Botanivore (750ml) | - |
|
Wilder Gin (750ml) | - | $35 |
Liqueurs/ Specialty Bar Items | ||
Antica Vermouth (375ml) | 2 | $18 |
Campari/ Aperol (375ml) | 2 | $17 |
*Sparkling Wine (750ml) - for the French 75 + numerous variations | 1 | $15 |
Maraschino Liqueur (375ml) | 6 | $20 |
Elderflower Liqueur (375ml) | 4 | $20 |
Orange Bitters | 2 | $8 |
Green Chartreuse (375ml) | 2 | $34 |
*Brandied Cherries (for the Martinez) | 1 | $19 |
*Creme de Violette (for the Aviation) | 1 | $24 |
Household Items | ||
Lemons | - | - |
Lime | - | - |
Egg white | - | - |
Cane sugar | - | - |
Grapefruit | - | - |
Cucumber | - | - |
Club soda/ sparking water | - | - |
Tonic water | - | - |
March 01, 2024
Granted, it may not help you play any better (though some golfers report performance-enhancing benefits). But it can take a bit of the edge off and remind you that—no matter how frustrating it can be—golf is about enjoying the day with friends, not what you log on the scorecard.
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